Contrary to what men believe, only God can forgive the sins that have been committed against Him. Joseph Smith and Brigham Young cannot forgive sins. Catholic priests cannot forgive sins. Lutheran Ministers cannot forgive sins. There are no men dead or alive who can forgive the sins that men commit against God.
ONLY GOD FORGIVES SINS!
Isaiah 43:25 "I, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake, And I will not remember your sins. ( New American Standard Bible 1995)
Isaiah 43:25 I alone am the one who is going to wipe away your rebellious actions for my own sake. I will not remember your sins[anymore]. (God's Word Translation 1995)
ONLY GOD FORGIVES SINS
Micah 7:18 Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquity ....
Only God pardons iniquity. Joesph Smith, Brigham Young, Catholic priests, nor Lutheran ministers have the authority to pardon iniquity.
Daniel 9:9 To the Lord our God belong compassion and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against Him;
Mankind has rebelled against God and He alone can grant forgiveness.
THE SCRIBES UNDERSTOOD ONLY GOD COULD FORGIVE SINS!
Mark 2:6-11 ..the scribes..7..He is blaspheming; who can forgive sins but God alone?".......10 But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins"---He said to the paralytic, 11 I say to you , get up, pick up your pallet and go home."
The problem with the scribes was they did did not realize that Jesus was God in the flesh. Joesph Smith, Brigham Young, Catholic priests, Lutheran ministers, nor any other man, was, or is God in the flesh.
DID JESUS GRANT THE APOSTLES THE AUTHORITY TO FORGIVE SINS? NO HE DID NOT!
Acts 8:18-22....20 But Peter said to him.....22 Therefore repent of this wickedness of yours, and pray the Lord that, if possible, the intention of your heart may be forgiven you.
The apostle Peter did not grant forgiveness to Simon, he told Simon to pray to God for forgiveness. NOTE: Simon was already a Christian.
THE PROOF TEXT.
John 20:19-23....23 If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained."
Jesus was not giving Peter and the rest of the apostle the power to grant forgiveness of the sins to men on an individual basis, Jesus was not ordaining them as priests with that power. Jesus was giving Peter and the apostle the authority to proclaim the terms for forgiveness of sins. Peter and the apostles did just that on the Day of Pentecost. Acts 2:22-38......36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ---this Jesus whom you crucified."37....Peter and the rest of the apostles.....38 Peter said to them, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Peter and the apostles did "not" forgive sins on the Day of Pentecost or any subsequent day. They declared the terms for pardon:FAITH (John 3:16) REPENTANCE (Acts 2:38) CONFESSION (Romans 10:9-10) WATER BAPTISM (Acts 2:38, 1 Peter 3:20-21)
CHRISTIANS ARE NOT ASKED TO CONFESS TO JOESPH SMITH, BRIGHAM YOUNG, CATHOLIC PRIESTS, LUTHERAN MINISTERS NOR ANY OTHER MEN IN ORDER TO HAVE THEIR SINS AGAINST GOD FORGIVEN!
Christians are to confess their sins to God in order to receive forgiveness.( 1 John 1:5-9 ...God is light...9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from unrighteousness.) NOTE: Confessing sins and asking God for forgiveness is only available to Christians. Non-Christians must have FAITH, REPENT, CONFESS JESUS AS LORD, AND BE BAPTIZED IN WATER IN ORDER TO HAVE THEIR SINS FORGIVEN.
ONLY GOD FORGIVES SINS!
( All Scripture, unless noted, was quoted from:NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE)
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11 comments:
You have many good scriptures to say that only God forgives sin!
You misunderstand what the Catholic Church teaches about the forgiveness of sins. Catholic priests in the confessional don't forgive sins by their own power. Jesus forgives sins. When a Catholic confesses in the confessional, obeying the Biblical command that we confess our sins to one another, the priest will speak the words of Christ's forgiveness to the person.
And if Jesus did not really grant the apostles any special role in the forgiveness of sins, why did He say what He did, having the foreknowledge of how it would be understood in the many centuries before your kind of Protestant came along?
I used to be a Protestant. Once I opened my mind enough to want to be fair to the Catholic Church, I noticed that the New Testament is full of Catholic teachings which have to be explained away in order to believe Protestantism.
YES YES YES AMEN
Doesn't the priest have a prayer of repentence with the person or people and then "in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit" forgive their sins.
Micah 6:8 "He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?"
Let's not beat up on each denomination for different traditions. (Is God sending you to hell for getting water sprinkled on you instead of immersion?) Focusing on these differences empowers man, not God.
Catholic teaches their doctrine, not the words of God. Yes, people confess their sins to the priests, and the priests are telling them to pray this, do that, say this, do that.
This is indeed a very nice blog post. I will reproduce this on my blog.
Woe to you hypocrites!
I really liked how you brought at that even the Apostles did not have the authority to forgive sins. That's a fantastic point that seemed rather obvious yet has eluded me up until now. All the Scripture references really solidify this post well. btw, just to clarify, Catholics don't believe the priests forgive. They believe that the priests make intercession with God for us. It is still God who forgives. That's what they believe. However, Jesus Christ is our High Priest who does all the interceding that we need. No priest on earth can or needs to fulfill a role that Christ is currently fulfilling before the Throne of the Almighty. Hope that clears things up.
Your blog has given me beautiful insights on so many things. Keep up the good work.
Stanley and Nissa loves cats, thank you for your comment, however you are confuse about the Catholic doctrine of absolution.
"Absolution is the remission of sin, or the punishment due sin, granted by the Church."
"Absolution proper is that act of the priest whereby, in the Sacrament of Penance, he frees man from sin."
(Ref: Catholic Encyclopedia:Absolution)www.newadvent.org/cathen/a.htm
Jesus says in John 20:21-23
He spoke to them again and said, 'As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you." Then he breathed the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone's sins, they are forgiven. If you refuse to forgive them, they are unforgiven.' This is not doctrine. It's scripture. Blessings.
In John 20:21-23 Jesus himself instituted the sacrament of Penance when he showed himself to his apostles on Easter day and commanded them, 'Then he breathed the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone's sins, they are forgiven. If you refuse to forgive them, they are unforgiven.' Nowhere did Jesus express more beautifully what happens in the sacrament of Penance than in the parable of Prodigal Son: We go astray, we are lost and can no longer cope. Yet out Father waits for us with great infinite longing: he forgives us when we com back; he takes us in again, forgives our sins. Jesus himself forgave the sins of many individuals; it was more imortamt to him than working miracles. He regarded this as the great sign of the dawning of the Kingdom of God, in which all wounds are healed and all tears are wiped away. Jesus forgave sins in the power of the Holy Spirit, and he handed that power on to his Apostles. We fall into the arms of our heavenly Father when we go to a priest and confess. The priest does not forgive our sins. It is God.
As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I am a little bit puzzled.
Joseph Smith and Brigham Young never had the power to forgive sins. They were Prophets of God, but plain men nonetheless.
Moses was a simple and plain man after leaving Egypt, he even argued against being called as a Prophet. He was called and sent anyway, having received his Priesthood from Jethro.
The right and ability to forgive sins resides with God alone.
Having said that, the Priesthood is the right to act in God's name, when He gives that direction. This Authority does not enable anyone to act in His place but to declare His will.
Just a small clarification.
Elder Barnes,
http://foundationsofpeace.blogspot.com
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